Google made it clear that it's targeting iOS users when the company released its Pixels with a dongle designed to easily transfer data between the two phones, and now Google’s making it easier for iPhone users to move to other Android devices, too.

Built right into the latest version of Google Drive on iOS, the process is about as easy as it can be. When you launch the app, simply open the menu, scroll down to Settings, and tap Backups. Inside you’ll see three options for storing your contacts, calendar events, and photos. Select the ones you want, hit Start Backup, and Google Drive will begin trawling your iPhone. When it’s done, you need only sign in to your Google account on the new phone and the respective apps will automatically populate with your backed-up data.

Google warns that the process can take a while if you have lots to back up (particularly when it comes to photos), so you’ll want to plug in your phone while it runs. And since the app needs to stay open during the transfer, it’s probably best to run it overnight.

The story behind the story: Switching your data between platforms is one of the biggest barriers for would-be switchers, and Google and Apple have each been working to make it easier for people who want to make the jump. Apple’s Move to iOS app is a little more comprehensive, moving messages, bookmarks, and mail accounts in addition to contacts, calendars, and photos, but the new Google Drive backup method is certainly an easy way to get started with your new Android phone.

But there’s more to changing from iPhone to Android than just calendars, contacts and photos. For all the rest of your stuff (or just a little more control over the transfer of these things), check out our comprehensive Switcher’s Guide launching later this week.

This story, "Google Drive update makes it a little easier to switch from iPhone to Android" was originally published by
Greenbot.